Francois Bernard Duhamel, Isis Gutiérrez-Martínez, Sergio Picazo-Vela and Luis Luna-Reyes
Collaborations between public administrations and private sector represent a specific challenge to manage contractual and organizational relationships among partners with…
Abstract
Purpose
Collaborations between public administrations and private sector represent a specific challenge to manage contractual and organizational relationships among partners with different goals, working cultures, norms, rules and processes. Therefore, the main research question of this paper is: What are the antecedents of effective collaboration in public-private IT outsourcing relations? Thus, the purpose of this paper is to identify the determinants of collaborative interface characteristics as scaffolding structures to manage public-private IT outsourcing relations effectively.
Design/methodology/approach
Two cases of public-private IT outsourcing relationships in Mexico were used to compare and contrast the main antecedents of collaborative interface characteristics. Case selection was based on the success in each case, as perceived by the collaborating members involved. A successful case and a less successful case of application development for the provision of public services from two state administrations in Mexico were chosen. Data gathering took place via face-to-face interviews.
Findings
The quality of the organizational interface depends on the interactions between exchange of knowledge and mutual trust, along with the commitment between partners. Trust, commitment and knowledge sharing interacted to enhance interface characteristics that have an impact on public and political values.
Research limitations/implications
This paper used and extended an outsourcing technology enactment model to emphasize the quality of organizational interfaces as a main antecedent for the success of public-private IT outsourcing relations.
Practical implications
Effectively designing work practices and contracts implies the development of flexible contracts, objects and routines to adjust project requirements to fulfill better public-private goals. Such flexible contracts and practices are only possible in a trusting environment where participants shape their mutual understanding of the project.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the literature on public-private IT outsourcing relationships by offering a theoretical framework on key antecedents and processes of success of these relationships.
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Francois Duhamel, Isis Gutiérrez-Martínez, Sergio Picazo-Vela and Luis Felipe Luna-Reyes
The authors propose a conceptual model that explains how interorganizational relations in public-private IT outsourcing (ITO) may enhance public value in public administrations…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors propose a conceptual model that explains how interorganizational relations in public-private IT outsourcing (ITO) may enhance public value in public administrations through process improvement.
Design/methodology/approach
The research design is based on the development of a theoretical framework based on the integration of transaction cost theory (TCT) and the resource-based view (RBV), and empirical interview data from IT managers in state and local governments in Mexico.
Findings
First, public-private ITO does produce specific process improvements in Mexico's public administration given its specific institutional context. Second, public value depends on the alignment between the characteristics of IT project activities and the attributes of outsourcing as a mode of governance. Third, process improvements moderate this relation. Fourth, relevant process improvements are identified on an empirical basis, showing the importance of institutional conditions in the determination of public value through interorganizational relationships in the public sector.
Practical implications
The authors suggest new roles for public managers as orchestrators of interorganizational relations, and specify the orientation relevant process improvements could take in a specific institutional context.
Originality/value
Through this study, it is possible to gain both theoretical and practical understanding of process improvements in public administrations to enhance public value.
Details
Keywords
Francois Duhamel, Isis Gutiérrez-Martínez, Sergio Picazo-Vela and Luis Luna-Reyes
The purpose of this article is to propose a theoretical model explaining information technology outsourcing performance in the public sector as well as a set of empirically…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to propose a theoretical model explaining information technology outsourcing performance in the public sector as well as a set of empirically testable propositions to improve the understanding of key determinants of success.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on Fountain ' s technology enactment framework, the authors integrated inter-organizational factors, such as trust, knowledge sharing, and quality of outsourcing interfaces, in the model and added organizational culture alignment between service providers and public administration to enhance Fountain ' s original framework.
Findings
The authors proposed 17 empirically testable propositions to establish the relationships between key variables in IT outsourcing projects in the public sector.
Research limitations/implications
The proposed model provides guidance for future research aimed at advancing knowledge of IT outsourcing.
Originality/value
The contribution lies in the development of specific variables, such as trust, knowledge, and organizational culture, which are related to building an outsourcing relationship and are used as determinants of the quality of organizational interfaces between public bureaucracies and IT outsourcing providers.
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Isis Gutiérrez-Martínez, François Duhamel, Luis F. Luna-Reyes, Sergio Picazo-Vela and María Isabel Huerta-Carvajal
The purpose of this article is to show the importance of joint actions and institutions for collaboration (IFCs) in the development and performance of information technology (IT…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to show the importance of joint actions and institutions for collaboration (IFCs) in the development and performance of information technology (IT) business clusters in the context of Mexico.
Design/methodology/approach
A review of the literature suggests the types of linkages that the clusters must develop to be successful in the context of emerging countries. Two IT clusters in the region of Puebla and Jalisco are compared to highlight the factors that differentiate successful and less successful clusters in this type of environment.
Findings
The presence of an IFC, such as the Jalisco Institute of Information Technology in Jalisco, is a determinant factor of the performance of the IT cluster there, contrary to Puebla. A model of dynamic interactions in clusters is proposed as a result of the analysis of the two cases.
Research limitations/implications
Our analysis included clusters from IT industry in Mexico. It needs to be extended to more clusters, more industries and other emerging countries settings for the sake of comparison and generalization.
Practical implications
In the context of the relative scarcity of formal institutions in emerging country settings, the purposive collaboration of both private and public sectors in IFCs is necessary to ensure a long-standing development and performance of business clusters.
Originality/value
In this article, we show the specific role of institutional arrangements in cluster development and performance in emerging countries, which has seldom been investigated both theoretically and empirically.